Is The Marriage of Figaro just about Figaro Is Don Giovanni s story the only one or even the most interesting one in the opera that bears his name For generations of critics historians and directors it s Mozart s men who have mattered most Too often the female characters have been understood from the male protagonist s point of view or simply reduced on stage and in print to paper cutouts from the age of the powdered wig and the tightly cinched corset It s time to give Mozart s women and Mozart s multi dimensional portrayals of feminine character their due In this lively book Kristi Brown Montesano offers a detailed exploration of the female roles in Mozart s four most frequently performed operas Le nozze di Figaro Don Giovanni Cosi fan tutte and Die Zauberflote Each chapter takes a close look at the music libretto text literary sources and historical factors that give shape to a character re evaluating common assumptions and proposing fresh interpretations Brown Montesano views each character as the subject of a story not merely the object of a hero s narrative or the stock figure of convention From amiable Zerlina to the awesome Queen of the Night to calculating Despina all of Mozart s women have something unique to say These readings also tackle provocative social political and cultural issues which are used in the operas to define positive and negative images of femininity revenge power seduction resistance autonomy sacrifice faithfulness class maternity and sisterhood Keenly aware of the historical gap between the origins of these works and contemporary culture Brown Montesano discusses how attitudes about such concepts past and current influence our appreciation of these fascinating representations of women

Understanding the Women of Mozart s Operas PDF

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